Table of Contents

Welcome letter from Madlene……………………………….….3 #1 - A diet is temporary………………………………………….4 #2 - Cutting out sugar and refined carbs………………..…4-5 #3 - Mindful Eating...............................................................6-8 #4 - Patience and consistency…………………………………8 #5 - Follow the season……………………………………….9-10 #6 - Your mindset………………………………………………..11 #7 - Honest assessments……………………………………...12 #8 - Setting goals………………………………………………..13 #9 - Eat this. Not this……………………………………………14 #10 - It's ok to not have a good day…………………….……15 Thank you………………………………………………………...16

Hello my friend! I’m so happy you’ve downloaded this document! You are one step closer to start a new healthy lifestyle. I’ve collected all my tips on how to start a healthy lifestyle from my blog in this document to provide you an easy guide with my nutritionist tested tips and learnings. Living a healthy lifestyle is much more than just eating healthier. It involves changing your mindset and creating new habits. I will help you to do just that. I will give you simple steps and advice on how to get started right away.

I’ve summed up my approach in what I call a Stellibell Life; feeding your body

wholesome foods that will fuel both your body and soul. Living a mindful life and

enjoying every moment. Living in harmony with your body and mind will impact all

aspects of your life, and give you the freedom to live a healthy and happy life. You

deserve to live a healthy life, and I will do everything I can to help you to do just that.

Get ready for an amazing journey to a healthy lifestyle!

#1 - A diet is temporary.

We've heard it a hundred times - A diet is temporary. Being healthy is a way of living. So why is it that diets are temporary and don't work? Being on a diet means eating according to a restricted menu. No one can eat according to strict rules for an extended time, so most people who go on a diet, will eventually go off the diet. Going off a diet often leaves us feeling guilty and hopeless, which leads us to eating more, which leads to gaining weight again... A very vicious and painful circle. Following a diet doesn't only impact our weight, it also impacts our social lives - we don't go out with friends since the diet doesn't allow drinks, or we skip going out for dinners since it's too many calories. That is not the way of a quality life. This is why I had to stop the evil circle of dieting for myself. Each diet I tried, the worse I felt afterwards. But how do you start a healthy lifestyle? How do you change from the diet-mindset and start creating healthy habits? I’ve tried many many times without success. I remember how frustrating it was to read in magazines and online how we are all supposed to start healthy lifestyles, but nobody explained how to do it.

#2 - Cutting out sugar and refined carbs.

The first thing I did when I started my new healthy lifestyle was to cut out all the processed foods. I didn't worry about portion sizes or calories. I just made sure I ate "clean" food. Each meal had a mix of protein, vegetables and a whole grain carbohydrate (whole wheat pasta, brown rice etc). This helped me to get rid of my sugar addiction without also being hungry. It allowed me to just focus on one thing (not eating any processed foods) to start with. I got a few headaches in the beginning while I got used to no sugar or white flour foods/carbs, but it wasn't too difficult since I didn't have to worry about cutting down calories as well. So what is processed food? It's everything that has multiple ingredients, contain preservatives, and that is packaged. In other words machine or man-made foods. Check the ingredients on the food packages and don't eat anything containing sugar or

anything with more than five ingredients. If it has ingredients you can't pronounce, don't eat it. Everything you eat should either grow out of the ground or have had a mom. Even though I'm not a vegetarian that saying makes me a little ill, but it is an easy way to explain clean food. If you stick to eating a protein (fish, steak, chicken etc) with tons of vegetables, then you will always know that you are eating right. You never have to worry about if you are eating sugar or refined carbs (white flour bread, flour pasta etc) if you stick to wholesome fresh foods. Also make sure you add a healthy fat (avocado, olive oil etc) to every meal. Examples of wholesome meals

Breakfast

Boiled or scrambled eggs with some strawberries

Scrambled eggs with avocado

Omelette with spinach and tomatoes

Whole-fat greek yogurt with blueberries

Lunch or dinner

Grilled chicken with broccoli

Steak with a green salad

Fish with a spinach salad

#3 - Mindful Eating Mindful Eating means feeding your body wholesome foods to fuel both your body and soul. Research shows that mindful eating helps with the development of healthy weight management and maintainable eating habits. It helps us make long-term improvements in our health, as well as improve our psychological well-being. In my opinion, mindful eating is one of the corner stones in living a healthy lifestyle. The practice of mindfulness is to be fully present and aware of the moment you are experiencing. Mindful Eating is to practice a complete focus on what you are eating, awareness of thoughts and emotions, and feeling gratitude for the food you have been given. Mindful Eating guides us to nourishing our bodies with energy and fueling it with healthy foods. You will start to see food in a positive light instead of associate food with negative emotions. Mindful Eating also teaches us to trust our bodies to tell us when and what to eat in order to feel our best.

The benefits of Mindful Eating

Mindless eating creates a healthy relationship with foods

It will help you develop healthy habits

You will learn how to appreciate and enjoy the taste and flavors of healthy foods

It will ensure you fuel your body with healthy foods

You will become aware of the emotions around eating and food

You will become more thankful

Mindful eating helps us move away from

Mindless eating of processed foods

Overeating and binge eating

Feeling guilty about eating and food

Dieting

Focusing on our weight

How to start practicing Mindful Eating 1. Be aware of your body

Throughout the day, be aware of your energy levels and mood. Are you really hungry, or are you stressed or frustrated? Thirst can also be mistaken for hunger. By being aware of your feelings and energy you will start to learn when you are really hungry. 2. Prepare your meals

Plan your meals in advanced and cook your own meals using real wholesome ingredients. Focus on the act of cooking- even the simple act of slicing and stirring can be relaxing. Pay attention to and enjoy the aromas. The result will be a delicious meal for you to sit down and enjoy. 3. Slow down

Sit down for every meal. Take your time to eat, chewing your food slowly and enjoy every bite. Organize your day and manage your time to ensure you have an established meal time, without feeling rushed. If you don't have the time to eat every meal mindfully, start off by choosing one or two meals a week to do it. 4. Focus on your food

Before you start eating, clear your mind and take a moment to be grateful. Take your time to eat; chewing your food slowly, enjoy and notice all the flavors. Visualize how the food is giving every cell in your body energy and nutrients

5. Love yourself

Be kind to yourself and your body. Love your body, and show your love by eating the rights foods.

#4 - Patience and consistency One thing I've learned on my journey to a healthy life is that the key to success is patience and consistency. You have to believe in your heart that you will see results and keep on going. When it gets tougher than tough and you want to eat everything in sight because "what's the point, I'm still not going to reach my goal weight" or, "I've never been able to succeed before, why would I this time?" (do I need to go on...?), that is when you need to believe and keep on going. If you are consistently eating healthy according to your plan and stay patient, the results will come. It takes 4 weeks for you to notice a difference, 8 weeks for your friends to notice, and 12 for the rest of the world! No matter what - believe and keep on going.

#5 - Follow the season One way to keep yourself motivated to stay healthy, and to keep going is to follow the season. I switch up my workouts and food according to the season. It prevents me from getting bored of my routine and tired of what I'm eating. It will also help your wallet.

My workout switcheroos

Winter - yoga and go to the gym (swimming, weight-lifting)

Spring and Fall - running outside and long walks, hiking

Summer - early or late morning runs/walk, HIT workouts outside

Below is what I eat each season.

Spring

Green peas

Asparagus

Artichokes

Spinach

Mango, oranges and pineapple

Lettuce

Tomatoes

Peas

Beets

Eggplant

Corn

Berries, cherries and melon

Fall

Broccoli

Brussel sprouts

Butternut squash

Cauliflower

Mushrooms

Apples, pears and grape

Winter

Turnips

Leeks

Collard Greens

Squash

Clementines, oranges, grapefruit and kiwi

#6 - Your mindset Have you heard the saying "once you control your mind, you can conquer you body"? It is so true. How many times have you set yourself up for failure by thinking negative thoughts? When my mind is scattered I sometimes realize I just ate something I wasn't supposed to. I don't even realize I've put it in my mouth until I'm chewing! Years of emotional eating have made it a habit to eat whatever is in sight. This is why I make it my daily mission to focus on what I'm doing so that I stick to my eating plan. Our minds try to control us constantly, but there are ways to control your mind. One important thing is to be mindful of advertising and social media. They are constantly trying to steal our focus and is sending us messages triggering eating or telling us to buy food we shouldn't eat. Our wandering minds are no match to them. We need to train our ability to focus on one thing at the time so that nothing can steal our attention. We also need to determine what we want to invest our energy and attention in. Knowing what is important to you and prioritizing those will help you keep your focus. Would you rather focus on Facebook or spend time with family? Would you rather eat junk food or feel good? Invest your energy very carefully and make sure each day the majority of your attention and energy is geared toward what you want for yourself, your life and your relationships. Grab a piece of paper and pencil and write down your priorities. Place the paper where you will see it every day. Daily rituals are also a good way of controlling your mind. Make it a habit to exercise and mediate every day. By moving your body you are also moving the energy in your body. It will improve your ability to control your mind and focus. When you control your mind, the sky is the limit…

#7 - Honest assessments Becoming healthy is not only about changing your eating habits and mindset. You also need to look at your surroundings. An honest assessment of ourselves and our environment is a great way to start a new healthy lifestyle.

Your kitchen plays a major role in your health so you need to assess it to ensure it is setting you up for success. It stands to reason that how we fill our kitchen -- the pantry, refrigerator, or freezer -- sets the pattern for what we eat. If you stock your kitchen with nutritious whole foods, that is what your family will eat most of the time.

Also go through your kitchen to ensure the set-up is efficient. Make sure that cooking utensils are close to the stove, plates and cups close to the dishwasher etc. You can also encourage your children to help at dinnertime by placing the plates in a lower cabinet with a silverware caddy for setting the table.

A good way to not waste leftovers is to assign one shelf in your fridge for easy access and to ensure you don't forget about them.

#8 - Setting goals One of the most important things in a successful weight-loss plan is setting a goal. You need to know where you are going, and from there you can set the plan. A goal without a plan is just a wish.

I always set two kinds of goals for my Clients - outcome goals and behavior goals.

Examples

Outcome goals (listed as SMART goals)

S (specific) – Madlene's goal is to lose 12 pounds in 12 months (1 pound/month).

M (measureable) – Madlene weighed in at 150 pounds, and will weigh 138 pounds by

July, 2016.

A (assignable) – Assigned to Madlene.

R (realistic) – Madlene's goal is to lose 1 pound per month, which makes this goal

attainable, healthy and realistic.

T (time-sensitive) – Madlene needs to reach goal by July, 2016

The outcome goals listed above translates into the following behavior goals

Track and document her food daily (I really like the Myfitnesspal app)

Start following an LCHF lifestyle

Exercise 30 mins every day

Knowing where I want to be in 12 months is crucial so that I can track accordingly. But I also need to identify my behavior goals (my plan) which will help me reach my goal. These are small daily changes that will have a big impact on my weight. Use this method for setting goals and you will see results!

#9 - Eat this. Not this.

I'm surprised on how many people still eat light or low-fat products. Why? Why eat food that doesn't keep you satisfied, and includes other "filler" products such as sugar, artificial sugar etc? Stick to the lists below, and you will see results. You are going to notice a big difference to your health and how you feel right away. No more unhealthy chemicals and no more feeling hungry!

Eat this

Full fat products; cheese, cream, sour cream etc

Lots of avocados

Butter and olive oil

Vegetables and berries

Protein

Not this

Processed foods; crackers, chips, cookies, ice cream etc

Sugar; candy, baked goods, soda etc

Rice, potatoes or pasta

#10 - It's ok to not have a good day

It’s important to know that it is ok not to have a good day sometimes. We are all human and we all have a bad day sometimes. The important thing is to forgive yourself and move on.

It is dangerous when you are so hard on yourself that you punish yourself with continuing to eat unhealthy. It's a viscous and dangerous cycle.

If you slip one day in your nutrition plan, then acknowledge what you did wrong and then continue to eat healthy the next day. Living healthy is a ongoing long-term journey. Sometimes when I slip with my diet I eat something healthy right away (strawberries, veggie sticks etc), just to jump start my healthy eating and to get back on track right away.

The most important thing is not to be mad at yourself. Love yourself and your body

Thank you

I’m happy and thankful for you reading this document, and hopefully start living a heathy life. Your body is also thanking you. It deserves your love and attention. For a full Stellibell Life, feed your body and soul with nutrition every day.

Namaste, Madlene